Vistra (NYSE:VST) Stock Price Down 3.7% After Analyst Downgrade

Vistra Corp. (NYSE:VST) shares fell 3.7% during mid-day trading on Monday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on the stock from $203.00 to $186.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Vistra traded as low as $112.00 and last traded at $114.65. 3,086,991 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average session volume of 7,706,231 shares. The stock had previously closed at $119.05.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on VST. Daiwa Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Vistra in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America raised Vistra from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $164.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Vistra from $161.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI began coverage on Vistra in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $202.00 price target on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Vistra from $151.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director John William Pitesa purchased 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $126.75 per share, with a total value of $190,125.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $439,442.25. This trade represents a 76.26 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul M. Barbas sold 24,136 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.19, for a total transaction of $2,997,449.84. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 51,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,341,513.97. The trade was a 32.10 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Vistra by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,355,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,938,752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,037,402 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Vistra by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,539,243 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,174,326,000 after buying an additional 219,055 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Vistra by 63.6% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,260,363 shares of the company’s stock worth $863,116,000 after buying an additional 2,433,732 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Vistra by 36.0% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,781,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,320,000 after buying an additional 1,000,307 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Vistra by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,026,484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $417,261,000 after acquiring an additional 296,714 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.88% of the company’s stock.

Vistra Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $39.98 billion, a PE ratio of 21.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.68. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $146.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $141.09.

Vistra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th were issued a dividend of $0.2235 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. This is a boost from Vistra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. Vistra’s payout ratio is currently 12.62%.

Vistra Company Profile

Vistra Corp., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated retail electricity and power generation company. The company operates through six segments: Retail, Texas, East, West, Sunset, and Asset Closure. It retails electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers across states in the United States and the District of Columbia.